Acceptable Quality Level (AQL)

The Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) is a crucial threshold in quality control, signaling the worst tolerable process average when a continuous series of lots is submitted for acceptance sampling. It establishes the maximum number of defects or errors allowed for a product batch to be accepted. For instance, in manufacturing clothing, an AQL might determine the number of stitches out of place on a garment before it's considered defective. This helps businesses balance the need for quality with the practical limits of manufacturing.